2020 Season Preview: Houston Dynamo

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2020 Season Preview: Houston Dynamo

Mauro Manotas and Alberth Elis are still in Houston.

Despite numerous rumors extending back multiple years, neither of the Dynamo’s attacking duo was sold this offseason. The Dynamo, then, will mostly run it back this season, this being perhaps their last shot to maximize the value of their attacking stars. Outside of a handful of acquisitions, this will mostly be the same team that has missed the playoffs the last two years.

One key difference: Tab Ramos, not Wilmer Cabrera, is the coach. Ramos is more likely to incorporate young players and is expected to play a more cohesive, front-foot style. Cabrera spent the first year of his tenure playing a counter-attacking 4-3-3, then switched to a more possession-based style in 2018 and 2019, with unfavorable results.

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Offseason Outlook: Houston Dynamo

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The offseason in Houston once again brings more question marks for the Dynamo as they enter yet another period of rebuilding. Gone are head coach Wilmer Cabrera and captain DaMarcus Beasley, in is former United States U23 coach Tab Ramos and a roster with plenty of holes still to fill.

A new era brings a bit of a renewed hope in the fanbase, but the Dynamo still have a bit of work to do if they want to compete in an increasingly difficult Western Conference. If Ramos and general manager Matt Jordan can fill the remaining holes in the roster and get the team to buy-in to the new system, this team could perhaps make some noise in 2020.

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Lowered Expectations: Week 29

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Lowered Expectations: Week 29

Welcome to Lowered Expectations, week 29 edition! Each week, we go about posting chalkboards and GIFs of the weekend’s best open-play shot attempts which did not quite live up to expectations (and rarely do we update this paragraph). We look at each one and not only evaluate the results, but also the process leading to them.

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Setting the Table Week 29: Gressel, Guttierez, and getting ready for the playoffs

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Setting the Table Week 29: Gressel, Guttierez, and getting ready for the playoffs

Welcome to Setting the Table. Each week we take some time to focus on the best chance creators in MLS from the last weekend. If you want to see the best chances that were wasted check out Lowered Expectations. Here we focus on chances that ended with the ball in the back of the net.

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Ranking the Wingers

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We’re all here because someone on Twitter started a discussion pertaining to ranking MLS wingers. I’m certain that my rankings won’t satisfactorally answer that question to everybody’s liking, but hopefully it adds something useful to the conversation. First of all, let’s establish some rules.

1)    The definition of a winger for this context is going to be super vague. Essentially a wide player lined up in the midfield according to the team lineup provided at the start of a match. Argue that however you wish. This just seems easiest.

2)    The player has to have played 500 minutes in the position his season. We’re not doing this “well--he’s been a winger in the past” or “he’s been really good when played out on the wing in a few games”. I’m not playing this game. It’s 500 minutes, meet it or beat it.

3)    If you’ve met the criteria above you get a mention in this.

4)    I’m going to provide some data with these thoughts. That will of course come from American Soccer Analysis. I could have broken things down far enough to where we only consider the advanced metrics, but we have to draw the line somewhere so we’re using numbers agnostic of the position played.

5)    Look. This is a rankings list. We’re not going to agree on all of these. It’s perfectly reasonable for you to think that I am in fact, wrong. That is fine. I might be.

Let’s get on with it.

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Techera Scores, Montreal Can't Stop Others from Scoring, and Other LITTLE THINGS FROM WEEK 13

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Techera Scores, Montreal Can't Stop Others from Scoring, and Other LITTLE THINGS FROM WEEK 13

Cristian Techera at the back post

As coherent and competent as they have looked this year, the New England Revolution returned to their old tropes in Week 13. Their high-flying draw with the Vancouver Whitecaps on Saturday was a merger of two eras: the Jay Heaps-led, defensive mistake-filled one and the current Brad Friedel one, in which they have found a definite style (the gegenpress!) and are successfully masking their ongoing defensive issues.

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Houston Dynamo: Doing More with Less

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Houston Dynamo: Doing More with Less

The battle for a Western Conference playoff spot is an absolute dog fight. After Sporting Kansas City, who are currently sitting on top of the West, there is only a four point gap between second place and ninth place. LAFC, Portland, FC Dallas, Houston, Vancouver, LA Galaxy, Minnesota, and Real Salt Lake are all currently sitting together, cramped right in the middle. Out of all those teams, there is one particular organization doing some especially impressive things - on and off the field. In this week’s team breakdown, we are going to take a look at the Houston Dynamo. Houston has managed to do more with less than anybody else in Major League Soccer and people have started to take notice, especially after a very impressive result at home against New York City FC (believe it or not, this article was planned even before that 3-1 win). So, now that eyes are opening across the MLS landscape, we are going take a comprehensive look at just what exactly the Dynamo are doing well and how exactly they are doing it. In order to do so, we are going to start off the field and work our way on to it. Let’s start with the second half of the title.

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Lowered Expectations: Week 10

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Lowered Expectations: Week 10

Welcome to Lowered Expectations, the week nine edition! Each week, we go about posting chalkboards and GIFs of the weekend’s best open-play shot attempts that did not quite live up to expectations (and rarely do we update this paragraph). We look at each one and not only evaluate the results, but also the process that led to them.

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Lowered Expectations: Week 8

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Lowered Expectations: Week 8

Welcome to Lowered Expectations, the week seven edition! Each week, we go about posting chalkboards and GIFs of the weekend’s best open-play shot attempts that did not quite live up to expectations. We look at each one and not only evaluate the results, but also the process that led to them.

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